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Sitter in 85 portraitsNelson's victories during the wars with France gripped the popular imagination, making him the most enduring of British heroes. In 1793, following the outbreak of war with France, he lost an eye in a successful attack on Corsica. Yet aside from this early misfortune, Nelson's strategic brilliance was confirmed at the Battle of Cape St Vincent (1797) and the Battle of the Nile (1798). This was followed by the great controversy of Nelson's career when, because of his passion for Emma Hamilton, he refused to leave Naples to defend Minorca. Nelson was wounded several times in combat, losing one arm and the sight in one eye.